Foto Finish Friday

El caballo de Evangeline Lilly, originally uploaded by Ibai Acevedo.

*Each Friday an interesting photo is selected to end the week on.

Stop Crying About Facebook’s Privacy Settings!

Facebook

Originally uploaded by Balakov

If you surf the Interwebs much these days, you’ll see many are worked up over the recent Facebook changes and what they mean to the privacy of its users. It seems this outrage comes and goes in cycles. I’ve seen Tweets of people saying they were leaving Facebook. I’ve read blog posts of people saying they don’t want Facebook making their private information public.

Just STOP!

How did Facebook get that information? You gave it to them. Furthermore, where does Facebook reside? The Internet. Here’s a simple solution to your privacy issues: Don’t give Facebook (or any other networking tool) any information you wouldn’t others to see. It’s so simple, it’s stupid it even has to be said. If you didn’t want people to see those photos of you behaving badly, why were you sharing all of that with your Facebook friends in the first place? Especially if you didn’t want it to be consumed by the public?

Also, why is the outrage often limited to Facebook? Didn’t you just Tweet about your dog peeing on your carpet? I wouldn’t have minded that bit of information remaining under your privacy umbrella. Didn’t you just check in on Foursquare at your favorite restaurant? Now I know you’re not home. Didn’t you just create your house on Gowalla? Now I know exactly where you live. Didn’t you just blog about your job, smearing your boss and coworkers? Now they will know how your really feel.

Oh, but you’re upset that Facebook changed the privacy terms and now you have to go in and tweak them. I see.

Finally, aren’t you usually the first person to spot a private Twitter account and accuse that person of not understanding what social media is all about?

So stop crying about Facebook every time they make a change in their business model or terms of service. Share, but don’t share what you wouldn’t want shared with people who may not know you, or your grandma. It’s easy. It’s simple. It will keep your blood pressure down when changes come along.

Your thoughts?

Mix Tape Monday: You’ve Done This Before

asparagus man

Originally uploaded by Rootedinstyle

Side A

Quotable: “People who are unable to motivate themselves must be content with mediocrity, no matter how impressive their other talents.” ~ Andrew Carnegie – He couldn’t be more right.
Change: Michael Hyatt is quickly becoming one of my favorite writers on the subject of leadership. In Two Postures Toward Change, he illustrates one of the best ways to deal with change. Lean into it.
Tornado Weather: Here in Missouri we’re coming up on the tornado season (if indeed there is a season for tornadoes). I haven’t watched the weather, but today looks and feels like it could produce one or some. Maybe I should watch the weather? Hmmm….
It’s Monday: Relax. It’s just another day. You’ve done this before.

Side B

I have something a little different for the musical portion of Mix Tape Monday. A friend of mine emailed me this video the other day. It’s a little girl singing along to CAKE’s song The Distance. I found it humorous and thought I would share. It almost makes me want a kid. Almost. Enjoy the rest of your Monday.

Foto Finish Friday

New York, originally uploaded by orgutcayli.

*Each Friday an interesting photo is selected to end the week on.

Cultivate Talent, Create Leaders

DSC03857

Originally uploaded by Tim Middick

“All greatness of character is dependent on individuality. The man who has no other existence than that which he partakes in common with all around him, will never have any other than an existence of mediocrity.” ~ James F. Cooper

The cult of mediocrity that can sometimes be found in the workplace feeds off a group mentality. The cult requires everyone or nearly everyone to drink the kool-aid in order to survive. Individuals aren’t usually tolerated very long. Especially if they start asking questions or posing different ways of doing things. Heresy is not acceptable. Compliance in everything is the only acceptable behavior.

In my opinion, this leads to a terrible waste of talent.

An office that merely trains cogs within it’s stringent system will never be able to tap into the talent that is directly under it’s nose. Wasted talent will in turn lead to lost talent. An acceptance of policies that depress excellence and promote mediocrity will drive your best employees crazy at best and out the door at worst.

Questions To Ask Yourself:

As a leader are you cultivating the talent you have within your team?
Are you creating followers (cogs), or are you creating more leaders?

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. One of the greatest compliments you could receive as a leader is to have created a leader who moves on to bigger and better things. If you’re truly cultivating talent and defeating the cult of mediocrity, you will be creating more leaders. Period.

Starting Today?

Yorkshire in Blue

Originally uploaded by Eric Parks

Think for a moment of that thing you keep putting off. It doesn’t matter what it is. If you’re procrastinating, you have something you’ve been meaning to start or finish. Are you telling yourself you have plenty of time? Is there other things you keep telling yourself you need to do first? Are you saying you just don’t have time for that now?

Look at it like this: Whatever it is you may be putting off today, tomorrow you will wish you had started today. One week, one month, even one year from now, you will wish you had started today.

So you’re starting today, right?

“A year from now you will wish you had started today” ~ Karen Lamb

Thanks to Kyle Durand for pointing me to that great quote.

Mix Tape Monday: Blueside

Pops, originally uploaded by Noel Kerns.

Side A

Quotable: One of the better quotes I heard all week actually came earlier today. “Social media did not invent criticism.” ~ Amber Naslund (@AmberCadabra) on the subject of, what if people say bad things about your brand in social media. She’s exactly right. Whether social media is around, used, or not, people will always be out there criticizing your brand. Why not take control of the message as best you can through social media?

Apple News: Or more specifically, iPhone news. Supposedly an iPhone 4G was discovered in a bar and then leaked onto the Internet over the weekend. I’m not sure if this is a brilliantly crafted leak from Steve Jobs or if this really was a huge mistake. Either way, it looks like there’s a new iPhone version on the horizon.

More Apple: This time the much hyped iPad. Michael Hyatt strikes a chord with me to some degree when he calls the iPad an elegant solution in search of a problem. He even goes so far as to compare it to the much hyped Segway. Remember those?

Side B

I mowed this evening and like many who have to endure this chore throughout the long spring and summer months, I had my iPod along for the ride. I listened to a band I had not listened to much in a while – Rooney. Here is their song, Blueside from about 5 years ago now. For many reasons this band always makes me think of spring and fresh starts in general. Enjoy and hope you had a great Monday!

Benjamin Franklin on SMTP

Travelling without moving

Originally uploaded by formalfallacy @ Dublin (Victor)

“Never confuse motion with action.” ~ Benjamin Franklin

Apparently Benjamin Franklin knew someone who practiced the SMTP method of management.

SMTP is always moving, but never going anywhere. SMTP is always talking about change, but keeping things the same. SMTP is always talking about solving issues, but never acting to solve anything. It’s pretty clear that even Benjamin Franklin wasn’t a fan of the SMTP Method.

The SMTP Method

The SMTP Method Feels Good

The Manager’s New Clothes

Solving Your SMTP Problem